Chelsea overcame Romanian champion Cluj 2-1 at Stamford Bridge, although things were marginally uncomfortable for a while when Cluj's Yssouf Kone equalized Salomon Kalou's first-half goal with a nicely taken header, while Roma was still level with Bordeaux at 0-0. But Didier Drogba came off the bench to pinch a cheeky winner after running on to a Joe Cole lob and sneaking the ball in on the half-volley. Meanwhile in Rome, Matteo Brighi and Francesco Totti scored to end Bordeaux's chances and at the same time win the group. The French team had the consolation of third place and a UEFA Cup round-of-32 spot.
In Group B, with Inter Milan already through, Panathinaikos and Anorthosis Famagusta faced off in Athens for the group's second qualification spot, the Greeks needing only a tie to advance. Thanks to a scrappy goal from Giorgios Karagounis it took all three points and even won the group outright thanks to Inter's 2-1 defeat at Werder Bremen. That pushed Bremen up to third to take the UEFA Cup place, with Famagusta dropping to last.
Group C's issues were wrapped up two weeks ago. Group winner Barcelona fielded a second-string team and mailed in its performance with a 3-2 home loss to third-place Shakhtar Donetsk, while second-place Sporting Lisbon strolled to a 1-0 win at the group's whipping boy, FC Basel.
In Group D, Liverpool secured first place with a 3-1 win at PSV Eindhoven, coming back from 1-0 down on goals from dour-faced Ryan Babel, a prime-time long distance strike from Albert Riera, and a smart finish from 19-year-old French striker David Ngog, his first for the club. Atletico Madrid finished second after a 0-0 tie at Marseille, which advanced to the UEFA Cup at PSV's expense.
SCOREBOARD
Group A
Chelsea 2 (Kalou, Drogba) CFR Cluj 1 (Kone)
Roma 2 (Brighi, Totti) Bordeaux 0
Final Standings: Roma (12 points), Chelsea (11), Bordeaux (7), Cluj (4).
Group B
Panathinaikos 1 (Karagounis) Anorthosis Famagusta 0
Werder Bremen 2 (Pizarro, Rosenberg) Inter Milan 1 (Ibrahimovic)
Final Standings: Panathinaikos (10 points), Inter Milan (8), Werder Bremen (7), Anorthosis (6)
Group C
Barcelona 2 (Sylvinho, Busquets) Shakhtar Donetsk 3 (Gladkyy 2, Fernandinho)
Basel 0 Sporting Lisbon 1 (Djalo)
Final Standings: Barcelona (13 points), Sporting Lisbon (12), Shakhtar (9), Basel (1),
Group D
Marseille 0 Atletico Madrid 0
PSV 1 (Lazovic) Liverpool 3 (Babel, Riera, Ngog)
Final Standings: Liverpool (14 points), Atletico Madrid (12), Marseille (4), PSV (3)
Qualified for CL Round of 16 (all berths set): Manchester United, Villarreal, Real Madrid, Juventus, Arsenal, Porto, Lyon, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Roma, Liverpool, Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan, Panathinaikos, Barcelona, Sporting Lisbon.
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